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Tuesday, January 4, 2011

Emergencies are for the White House, not graphic design • 3/365 •

Blogging from the ER... what dedication, huh? As my son lies on a bed next to me, watching TV and having a breathing treatment, I am writing in my notebook. I will type it into my blog when I get home and settled tonight. I'm committed to 365 days of blogging this year, after all. No skimping.

It's been an emergency kind of day. 7:40 am: my boyfriends FedEx package from England containing his medication is held up in customs. 9:20 am: my studio partner quits with six days until rent is due. 10:30 am: pick up my son from school because he isn't breathing well. 4:00 pm: my Mom can't take the kids to dance after all because something came up. 8:30 pm: my son needs to go to the ER because his allergies are kicking his ass. In between all of those times: deal with those things and try to get anything done on today's to-do list.

Rough day. As bad as it sounds, though, things get handled and it's not much different than a lot of workdays can be. Graphic design emergencies happen all the time. Seriously. Many days there are "I-need-this-graphic-design-right-away-or-my-company-will-be-in-ruins" interruptions, along with unplanned revisions and a project I just can't say no to even if it means doing it in the middle of the night. There is a constant juggling, day after day, that never lets me finish my to-do list. Of course, I get more done than just what's on my list too, so maybe I'm getting ahead, maybe I'm right on track, or then again maybe I'm behind.

It all averages out in the end. If everyone's real needs get met, if my commitments are honored, if quality work turns out, I'm happy. After all, it's not the White House or a hospital. It's just advertising. They really aren't "graphic design emergencies" because somehow even though there isn't enough time to do it the first time, there is always time to RE-do it if there's a mistake. Plan, be proactive, then handle the rest as it comes.

8 comments:

Astonishing. You poor girl - I trust everything worked out OK in the end. Isn't it interesting how in your case, emergencies are often a part of the client's poor planning? I wonder how many emergencies at the WH and the ER are because of people's PPP?

Great post! At work, where we design instructional materials, we try to remind ourselves that we're not creating rocket ships, that we're not producing things that will harm people if we mess up with a tiny tiny element. We have to remember to not take ourselves too seriously....

haha Wendy ... and you used to work in the "White House" with me! (I know it's yellow, but I always used to say they acted like it things were so important it didn't matter how late people worked, etc.

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Confessions of a Superhero is a hybrid of professional and personally-expressive blogs. It's a little more honest than most professional blogs. It's a little more professional than most expressive blogs. Bonus ingredients: trends, news, creativity, art, randomness and super powers.

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The only difference between the mild-mannered civilian and their superhero alter-ego, is the little black mask.

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